Some corridors and staircases were obstructed by furniture or rubbish. Some switch rooms were occupied without the management office's consent.

In a notice dated January 7, posted in the block's lift lobby, the management office said 'obstruction of common areas and unauthorised occupation of utilities rooms' were still spotted 'continuously'.

The office gave an ultimatum to the departments to rectify the conditions by today or all articles would be removed and dumped without prior notice. The South China Morning Post visited the offices yesterday afternoon and found a fire door in a stairwell of the high block wedged open. Building material was dumped in a corner on the third-floor staircase.

The 47-storey building houses the headquarters of the Justice, Architectural Services, Legal Aid and Urban Services departments.

The offices of the Company Registry and Land Registry, used by hundreds of researchers each day, are also in the block.

A secretary for Miss Leung, whose office occupies the fourth floor of the block, said the justice boss was too busy to respond to queries about fire safety.

The Urban Services Department, which occupies the 42nd to 45th floors, denied there were fire risks. A spokesman said: 'I am not aware of any obstruction.' Urban Property Management, which manages the block, refused to comment.